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Stairways: A Checklist for Stair, Railing, Landing Safety Inspections
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Stair & railing inspection form

Stair & railing safety hazards

Our site offers impartial, unbiased advice without conflicts of interest. We will block advertisements which we discover or readers inform us are associated with bad business practices, false-advertising, or junk science. Our contact info is at inspect-ny.com/appointment.htm.

This document assists in inspecting indoor or outdoor stairs, railings, landings, treads, and related conditions for safety and proper construction: the table shown in this document outlines some of the information we collect during a field investigation of the condition of an interior or exterior stairway for safety defects. Having investigated several cases of severe injury related to falls and railing collapses I developed this field data collection checklist. © Copyright 2008 Daniel Friedman, All Rights Reserved. Information Accuracy & Bias Pledge is at below-left. Use the links at page left to navigate this document or to go to Other Website Topics. Green links at left show where you are in our document & website.

Stair, Railing, Landing Inspection Checklist and Worksheet

Odd dimensions of stair tread width, height, depth, nose, low or flimsy stair railings, loose stair components, and a host of other stair and railing defects are the source of more injuries and more lost time from work in the United States (and probably other countries) than any other source of injuries after automobile accidents. If you see a silly railing such as the one in this photograph it may indicate an approach to stair building that is a red alert for other hazards.

Stair kits and manufactured stairs can be expected to meet accepted standards for safety but watch out for amateur installations and particularly for site-built stairs in oddly-shaped locations or in areas of no building code enforcement. This stair inspection checklist assists anyone who wants to inspect a stairwell by providing a means to document the pertinent measurements, inconsistencies in dimensions, or other stair and railing hazards or defects.

Stair Inspection Notes and Observations
Client:	.
RE Case:	.
Location:	.
Inspection Date & Conditions:	.
Inspector:	.
Item	Measurement	Comments
Total Stairway Rise	.	.
Total Stairway Run	.	.
Landing top dimensions	.	.
ht. vs. int. floor	.	.
Entry door swing in/out	.	.
Landing intermediate dims.	.	.
Landing bottom dimensions	.	.
Tread width = stair width	.	.
Tread depth (horizontal)	.	.
Individual Tread Conditions
1 Tread, riser ht./condition	.	.
2 Tread, riser ht./condition	.	.
3 Tread, riser ht./condition	.	.
4 Tread, riser ht./condition	.	.
5 Tread, riser ht./condition	.	.
6 Tread, riser ht./condition	.	.
7 Tread, riser ht./condition	.	.
8 Tread, riser ht./condition	.	.
9 Tread, riser ht./condition	.	.
10 Tread, riser ht./condition	.	.
11 Tread, riser ht./condition	.	.
12 Tread, riser ht./condition	.	.
Tread nose (indic. variation)	.	.
Tread level F-R (indic var)	.	.
Tread level L-R (indic var)	.	.
.	.	.
Railing Conditions
Railing height @	.	.
Railing height @	.	.
Railing height @	.	.
Railing security	.	.
Railing cross section/Shape	.
Baluster Conditions
Baluster spacing	.	.
2nd Railing height @	.	.
2nd Railing height @	.	.
2nd Railing height @	.	.
Lighting Conditions
Lighting/Switch at/watts/condition	.	.
Other Observations:
.
.
.
© Copyright 2008 Daniel Friedman

Notes to Table:
1st Tread = bottom
Structural conditions to observe include connections, proper number and type of fastener, spans, condition of materials. Subtle details such as a wooden exterior stair tread installed upside down (bark side down) can lead to cupping which can cause algae or ice and a subsequent slip and trip hazard.
Circular stairs pose special problems concerning tread shape, potential walking area, railing design.
Handrails pose special considerations beyond height and security, such as graspability, shape, condition.
Report other construction details, structural connections, modifications, loose connections, support, posts, weather exposure/covering, weathering, rot, tread damage, tread nose wear/damage, moss, algae, cupping, splitting, tread connection and support (below), rail obstructions, rail grip, stairway obstructions, permits & "CO" obtained/missing)

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Stairways: A Checklist for Stair, Railing, Landing Safety Inspections StructAPedia ©

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